October 21, 2011 - 'Irene' Reeks Havoc on the 'Yancey'

This message doesn't get any clearer.
Olympus Dive Center, Morehead City, NC 2011.

     As the Fall season of 2011 at Olympus Dive Center comes in to play the dive conditions offshore have improved since the numerous storm systems such as Irene, Katia and Lee that rolled through the region since August have dissipated. With reports of visibility as high as 60 feet and temperatures still in the high 70's the diving has been looking up somewhat. Unfortunately, the winds have increased prohibiting charters from going out on many of our scheduled days. Many I say, except last weekend when the Midnight Express conducted an expedition to the wreck of the Yancey on Sunday, October 16. In this Blog Report read about the dive conducted on this historical deep wreck dive 40 miles off the Carolina Coast. I do not have any still images to share with you from this dive but, I do have a video short available. (Read on for the link) Also, my Photo Tips of the Week has returned in this issue. I discuss the use of Photoshop and like software systems on your photos to enhance their quality as well as the ethics of using them in photography.

The sinking of the
SS President Coolidge.

     With the dive season slowing down for me here I will have less and less to report on for NC diving. That does not mean an end to my Dive Blog Report. Stay tuned for new future stories on an inside look at the making of my documentary films on Truk Lagoon and the SS President Coolidge plus a bit on Mike's Top Ten Dives of all time. For any photo buffs out there keep in mind I offer courses for all levels of enthusiasts both in person and live online with web cams. If your getting bored this fall/winter and want to fine tune your photo skills or learn some new ones contact mike@evolutionunderwater.com for more information on how to sign up. 

     Our season here is not over in NC. My vessel the 'Midnight' has full day trips and half day trips scheduled this weekend October 22 & 23 as well as the weekend following that one. Olympus Dive Center and the flag ship M/V Olympus will have trips running all the way through the end of November with a Lobster Excursion coming up as well. So don't hang you gear up yet because you could miss something special diving the Outer Banks of NC. Give the shop a call at 252-726-9432 to find out what is available and when.

'Irene' Reeks Havoc on the Yancey

The USS Yancey. 

     The 459' Yancey was sunk as part of the artificial reef program of North Carolina in 1990 in 165' of water. Before she was sent to the bottom she served the US Navy as a fast attack cargo ship with a long and distinguished career. The Yancey was commissioned in October of 1944 and was present at the fierce battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa in WWII. During the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1964 the Yancey was part of the blockade task force supporting the military ships. She received two battles stars for her service in WWII and three stars for the Korean War. In 1970, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge had an altercation with this 14,000 ton vessel when she collided with the bridge during a stormy gale closing the bridge for at least three weeks. The Yancey's accomplishments are vast and spanned over nearly three decades before being pulled out of service in 1970.

The USS Yancey.

     When she was sunk in 1990 as an artificial reef it was in excess of 165' of water making her one of the deepest wreck dives in the US that was sunk intentionally. The depth of this ship places her out of reach of most recreational divers but with special training and experience any diver can access this awesome wreck. The Yancey for the last 21 years has been laying on her starboard side fully intact until Hurricane Irene passed overhead in late August 2011 tearing a large section of her bow apart and strewing it across the wreck and on to the sand. Since this wreck does not get dived frequently this new facelift was not discovered until October 16 when divers on my vessel, the Midnight Express returned from a dive on the Yancey to inform me of the damage. The fact that the surge from this storm system managed to cause that much destruction in water that deep says a lot about the power of nature. Normally, wrecks that sit in depths of more than 150 feet are better protected from surge but this was not the case with Hurricane Irene with her 30' seas. This storm indeed managed to rearrange a few hull plates on the Yancey.

Head of Olympus Dive Center's
Training and Education, Jon Belisario.

    Instructor, Jon Belisario, Olympus's head of dive training and education, had coordinated a technical diving excursion to the Yancey months before in order to conduct advanced dive training with his students and to offer a deep 'tech' dive to anyone with the credentials to go. It had been planned that we would do two dives on Saturday and two dives on Sunday October 15th and 16th. On Saturday morning I checked the weather report as usual before heading down to the boat and with offshore winds showing 15-20 knots and 4-5' seas I began to think this would be a no go. Once I arrived at the boat the mass of gear had already been loaded with a few divers still bringing on additional tanks, regulators and other miscellaneous gear to conduct this deep dive. Captain Robert Purifoy of the M/V Olympus and myself put our heads together to see what we could do this day with the weather being questionable. The most recent reports showed the wind had died down some but fishing boats plying their trade offshore had reported stiff currents adding to the remaining winds. The Yancey is nearly 40 miles offshore and when you have divers descending to 165' in 4'-5' seas with strong current there is increased potential for trouble. After mulling things over for a while, Capt. Robert and myself decided that diving inshore closer to the beach would be a better bet for his charter. Problem for me was I had a group of nine advanced divers who were rigged up for a 165' dive and a 60' dive inshore just wouldn't cut it for them. Either we would make it offshore or we wouldn't go at all. Once the Olympus left the dock that morning I sat tight and listened to the VHF radio for additional news from anyone offshore and I began to get mixed reports. The wind at the dock at this point dropped off to nearly nothing and it would be a shame to at least not try it out. I had heard there was another dive boat already making way to another wreck that was 36 miles offshore so I decided we would head out and see what we would find. At this point something in my gut didn't feel quite right as I exited Beaufort Inlet on this unsettled morning. The combination of the weather offshore and the complex dive ahead of us gave me cause for concern. After listening to a few more reports from fishing boats and learning that the other dive vessel heading offshore in fact had changed their mind and never left the dock, I finally pulled the plug on this technical dive for today and indicated to Jon and the dive group that we were going home. There was a good chance we could have pulled this off but, you have to take all factors into account, the most important of which is what your gut instinct is telling you and mine was telling me it was time for a stack of pancakes at the local diner and not a 40 mile jaunt out in to questionable conditions in the Atlantic Ocean. I then turned the boat around and headed back through the inlet to the dock and could only hope for a reprieve in the weather for the next day.

The end of a day on the Morehead Waterfront.

The USS Yancey in the middle during the Cuban Missile Crisis 1964.
(Photo courtesy of the US NARA.)

    On Sunday, with a much more promising weather report, the Midnight loaded up once again and headed out to sea under the cover of darkness with daybreak nearing. The wind was coming from behind land out of the north making for flat calm conditions at the inlet. With a 40 miles trek ahead of us due south east it was time to sit back, keep an eye on the weather and get to our destination safe and sound. North winds however can be a pain in the ass to assess the sea state because the further offshore you go the further out of the lee of land you are. The seas tend to build gradually from behind you not fully revealing wave height as it would if you were heading dead in to it. This is exactly what happened on this trip out to the Yancey. The winds increased, the seas started to build and my thoughts began to wonder if this was such a good idea. Every so often, glancing over my shoulder at the incoming waves behind me, I would deem it still safe to continue on. I could only hope that the seas would stay the same or taper off by time I arrived at my waypoint. The forecast after all had called for a drop in wind speed as the day progressed. "Maybe they will have got it right for a change", I mumbled to myself while I nervously gnawed on a bag of pretzels. With five miles left to go the bow of the 'Midnight' began to plow in to the back side of the waves ahead of me causing the steering to become more difficult which indicated that it was getting squirrelly out there. Turning around at this point was not an option though. I was too close. I would make it to the wreck site and turn around in to the wind and sea to assess what I had on my hands. Besides, it couldn't be too bad, I had on all sides of me, small 20'-28' center console sport fishing boats trolling for King Mackerel or whatever else would take there bait. The one big difference between them and I was they didn't have to get off the boat and dive down 165' feet and then get back on. That changes the game just a little. As it would be, we arrived in a timely fashion and the ocean seemed to die off somewhat so I gave my mate, Clint Etheridge, the green light to tie us off to the Yancey. After coming to idle I tried to judge if there was any current but with a south ground swell, a north wind chop it was hard to determine. As far as I could tell current was minimal. I was wrong.

The USS Yancey.

     With my mate prepared to jump with the hook, I pulled up over the waypoint and marked a very huge object on my sonar. "Jeeze, she is a big one", I thought. The 459' Yancey is indeed a large shipwreck. Once overhead of her I told Clint to go. With a flash he was over the side on his way down to what I hoped was the top of the port side forward of the super structure. After about 4 minutes he called up on the radio from the bottom that all was ok. After my crew and I took up the slack from the anchor line I called back down to Clint to get the condition report. "We have about 40-50' of 'viz' with a decent current ripping down the wreck", he piped. "Is the current to strong to dive in", I inquired. "Negative", he replied. "But, they better be aware of it", he finished with a grave tone. With a strong wind from the north and a stiff current from the south the 'Midnight' was forced with her starboard side up in to the waves by the pushing current making for and uncomfortable side to rolling motion. Conditions were border line acceptable and I briefed all nine divers on what to expect and the layout of the wreck. The schematic I drew of course showed a fully intact 459 foot long freighter laying on it's starboard side. Little did I know that my drawing would prove to be obsolete due to Hurricane 'Irene'. My main concern was the current though. If a diver at that depth has any trouble and must ascend away from the anchor line he could potentially drift a quarter of a mile or more before his head breaks the surface at the end of the dive. Drifting in 3 foot seas 40 miles offshore is not such a great idea really when you think about it. "Go down the anchor line, come back up the anchor line", was my simplest and most valuable piece of information I could bestow on these divers.
     With that said it was time for them to make the jump. One by one divers lugging about 150lbs of gear each leapt off the side or should I say dropped off the side of the boat and vanished down the line. With a dive this deep none of them was expected to return for at least 60 minutes due to a fare amount of decompression required at the end. The penalty for diving this deep is having to  hang on the line in the ripping current for 30-40 minutes with the equivalent of a small dive shop attached to your body. 

Captain Tony Elliot at the helm of
the Thomas S. (stock)

     As each diver returned they all indicated it was a good time down there with while some dragged their feet somewhat after the laborious dive. Capt Tony Elliot of the 'six pack' dive boat, the Thomas S with Olympus Dive Center returned to the Midnight about the same time as Jon Belisario and both made note of the newly found damage to the Yancey bow. "She is tore up pretty bad", said Tony in awe, who has been on this wreck before with Jon and knew something was different right away. I could only hope the other divers, who have never been on this wreck before, would figured out that a part of the ship was missing after I told them it was fully intact. A diver could easily lose his way with this kind of information. After all returned safe and sound no one indicated they had any trouble with navigating. "Good news", I thought to myself as I started to get my own gear ready to head in for a short dive on the Yancey. "These guys aren't the only ones who are going to have a bit of fun today" I smugly said to myself.

    My goal for my dive was to try to capture the extent of the damage on video rather than with a still camera. With the visibility only around a dark 40 feet, getting wide angle still images would be difficult if not impossible. With a video camera I could take pan shots of the effected area. With camera loaded I jumped over the side and started to head down the anchor line. The full extent of the current came to my attention immediately. A hand over hand descent down the line would be required today which is easier said than done when your carrying a 30 pound camera system in one hand. I also noticed how dark it was and that the first thirty feet of water was dirty and colder than below where the temp climbed to around 77F. The top dirty layer also shut out a good portion of sunlight making it darker than usual at 150 feet. Once I arrived on to the wreck I let go of the anchor line and immediately began to drift at high speed across the port side super structure at 145'. I turned my body around and began kicking into the current and sizing up the wreck. With a sturdy kick it wasn't much trouble making way. When my eyes adjusted to the low light I could clearly see an entire section of the wreck peeled away exposing unknown machinery below deck. Time was limited as was my air supply so I had to work quickly. I began taking pan shots of the superstructure and the missing section while highlighting the steel plates that were ripped apart like a shredded piece of paper. I also managed to get a shot of machinery below deck which may be fuel transfer pumps but I cannot say for sure. Lastly, a jumbo sized Lionfish caught my attention and was worthy of a quick shot before making my way back to the anchor line. After about 18 minutes of humping that camera around in a stiff current I was ready to head back up the line. With each kick of my fins it seemed like I was gaining only inches towards my destination. Focusing my attention on long strong kicks and deep steady breaths I soon was able to grab the anchor line and slowly head on up. 
     It was at this moment I realized a small error on my behalf. I usually never dive with a lanyard attaching my camera gear to my body since I prefer to hold my camera at all times. This was a problem today since letting go of the anchor line was made difficult due to the 'Six Flags' style current breezing passed me on the line. The entire ascent I had to hold the camera in one hand while clasping a death like grip around the 7/8" thick nylon anchor line. At around 50 feet I was suppose to do a gas switch and change regulators in my mouth. (Switching to a higher percentage of Oxygen at shallower depths is a standard practice in technical diving) Since doing gas switches requires at least one hand I thought this would be an interesting trick. Wrapping my leg around the line I freed one hand up to perform the gas switch but not without some serious hassle. I felt like a tangled flag on a pole in a gale force wind with my leg twisted around that line. I have no doubt I looked a little ridiculous down there but, oh well, it got the job done. Once steady with my new regulator in my mouth it was time to complete the ascent. After hanging at 15 feet to complete my decompression requirements by off gasing unwanted nitrogen from my tissues I could poke my head above the surface, pass my camera up and clamber back on the deck. "Wow that was some current", I said aloud with a fairly weary voice while thinking to myself, "it wouldn't have been nearly so bad if I had a silly lanyard for my bloody camera". Anyway you "live and learn" or should I say "dive and learn".

To view the video of this dive please visit this link, Evolution Underwater Imaging and click on the first thumbnail in the gallery.

    After all the other divers took a long two hour surface interval, the time came for them to conduct dive number two of the day. With many of the mysteries that first dives on new locations offer behind them, the second dive comes much easier. As luck would have it the wind calmed down more flattening the seas out and even the current seemed to slack off some as well. I made a point to inform everyone about the damage that had occurred to the wreck if they had not already figured it out and give them some last minute pieces of advice before cutting them lose on the Yancey. Without fail the divers made there jump, headed on down to the wreck and returned safely without incident. By time the last diver ascended the seas were near flat calm and the sun was bright overhead. "It was going to be a nice ride home", I thought. On rides like this back to shore the main concern is staying awake which is made easier by cranking the satellite radio and finishing off whatever food I can find in the wheelhouse. Nothing is safe from me if left out. Boating and diving after all makes me hungry. After an uneventful two and a half hour ride back to the dock it was time to pack up the boat and say thanks and good-byes to all the divers. Hopefully, they all had a good time and learned some new techniques while diving the wreck of the Yancey. I hope to see them all back again.

Mike's Photo Tip of the Week
Image Processing

     Although the word "Photoshop" is a genetically used term in the English language sometimes as a noun and other times as a verb it is of course in reality a trademarked high powered graphics editing program that was released by Adobe in 1990. Twenty-one years later this software technology has revolutionized the way the world creates and views photographs causing a lot of controversy and competition along the way. The ability to digitally enhance an image by changing its exposure, colors, contrast and sharpness, to name just a few, has made it possible to take a mediocre photo and turn it in to a work of art or a simply a more visually stunning image. Those that utilize this technology in the favor, love it while others, such as the film photography enthusiasts, despise it for allowing so called 'cheats' to produce imagery they would not otherwise know how to create with traditional methods of photography.

     Without creating a huge debate I will offer my two cents on this topic. In short, Photoshop when used professionally and ethically is an extension of the artistic process. Merely knowing how to tweak the settings of a photo in Photoshop or similar software systems is not enough to create a striking image. One must understand what a striking image looks like to begin with and then know how to create it. Being able to visualize your image is the first step. Second, you must have the correct hardware to take the shot with. Once you have the ideas and the correct equipment you must find the subject you are looking for and make sure the environmental conditions are suitable. After all this, you then take your photos and apply them to Photoshop. To not digitally post-process your images is like not developing your film negatives. You are doing an injustice to the final image. When all is said and done it is how one digitally processes their images that will most often separate a quality image from a poor one. I have all too often seen examples of decent shots completely screwed up by the creator in the processing stage because they became over zealous with the slide rules in the program. These sliders can over saturate an image or create loss of detail in the shadows. These problems I just mentioned are only but a few examples of what can go wrong. A photographer should have a basic understanding of color theory and understand the elements of a photo such as shadows, mid-tones and highlights and the relationship between them. My background with graphic arts in college was a huge help in understanding what makes for a quality image but practice and trial and error were just as important as they still are today. I would recommend signing up for as many courses as you can afford on the topic of digital enhancement and practice comparing your work to that of the pros to see what the differences are.

The image on the right is clearly over saturated while the image
on the left is more true to life. (Stock)

     With todays high quality digital SLR cameras on the market today it is quite feasible to take great images without doing any sort of post production processing. Place the quality setting on the camera to JPEG and the software within the camera does the processing for you when you snap the shutter and most often with very accurate results. But, if it is the extreme high end of quality that you pursue then shooting in a uncompressed RAW format, which is the also called the 'digital negative', will be where you want to start out. RAW images by design usually lack color saturation, contrast and sharpness from the image. The uncompressed file format a RAW is will allow for much more latitude in Photoshop for the user to 'recreate' the image the way he or she saw it by adding color and contrast back in to the image. I myself shoot nothing but RAW files and edit nearly all of them while some have more editing than others depending on the image itself.

    My personal rule of thumb is to never use Photoshop as a crutch in taking photos. If you say to yourself after snapping a mediocre photo, "ah, who cares I can fix it in Photoshop", you are doing yourself an injustice. By not striving to take the best quality photo possible with the hardware that you possess you are not learning to become a superior photographer. Start out with the best image possible before you edit it. My other rule to shoot by is to be as honest with my images as I can. I never change the composition of an image to improve it by adding or subtracting objects from the photo ie cloning a Sand Tiger Shark and placing him on a coral reef in the Bahamas. That would be cheating not to mention stupid because many viewers will know that Sand Tigers do not exist in the Bahamas. Your reputation will begin to founder with sad attempts like these. Unfortunately, there are many people in all branches of photography that are completely dishonest with their images just so they can make a 'buck'. The public today is all too aware of these unscrupulous photographers in turn making disbelievers out of most people when they look at a superb photo. "Did you Photoshop that?", is the question you will understandably get when skeptics look at your photos.  Like it or not that is the way it is now in this modern digital world. Photoshop, for sure, is here to stay. You can embrace it or reject it. That's up to you and the quality of the finished product you desire.

Happy Diving!

Mike Gerken

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September 27, 2011 - Michael J Norwood Event 2011

To all those who are new to my blog, to get the gist of it please read, "Welcome Aboard",  from the May 1, 2011 posting and peruse a few of my other Dive Blog Reports from weeks past at the side bar to the right.

Visit www.evolutionunderwater.com to see video shorts from the 2011 season at Olympus Dive Center and click here for more info about myself.


Remember to share this Dive Blog Report with anyone you think would enjoy it. Thank you!

Photo of the Week

The Morehead City Waterfront as seen from the sun deck of the M/V Olympus.
The Midnight Express is the last boat on the right. (New)

     The winds blew, the seas were bumpy and the skies unloaded a deluge of rain upon the Carolina Coast this past weekend but, the divers who attended the Michael J Norwood Event of 2011 defied the adverse weather and went diving regardless and with much success. The fact that John Chatterton was the guest diver on board the M/V Olympus and Midnight Express for this years event made the diving that much more exciting for everyone involved.

John Chatterton.
Photo Courtesy of John Chatterton.

     For those who are not familiar with John Chatterton's work, he is probably one of the most accomplished divers in the world today who leaped in to the public spotlight when he assisted in the discovery and identification in the 1990's of a German U-Boat, the U-869 that was sunk off the coast of New Jersey. The story of these events was published in to a best selling book titled Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson. John was also one of the hosts to The History Channels popular programs, Deep Sea Detectives. John's many other accomplishments are too vast to write in this Blog Report so click on the links above to familiarize yourself more with his career.

    In December of 2003, while filming an episode in Palau for the Deep Sea Detectives, John's partner, Michael Norwood died while diving the WWII destroyer, the USS Perry. In his memory, his widow, Diana Norwood created the  Michael J Norwood Memorial Research Fund whose purpose was to raise funding for Diver Alert Network (DAN) to research diving related injuries. 

Diana Strauss Norwood on the left and Carla Chatterton on the
 right standing in front of the USS Schurz display at the dive shop. 

This year marked the 6th year for the 'Norwood Event' where divers sign up to go diving for a long weekend on one of Olympus Dive Centers dive boats with John Chatterton and also get to meet Diana and John's wife Carla.  (Carla Chatterton, by the way, is one of the leading volunteers for Soldiers Undertaking Disabled SCUBA (SUDS) and has committed a lot of her time and energy to the cause. To learn more about SUDS please read my Dive Blog Report July 22, 2011 - Suds and Subs.) A percentage of the proceeds from the charter fees from the weekends diving is contributed to the Norwood Fund along with additional monies raised from the auction during the Michael J Norwood dinner on Saturday evening.

Group leader for Lynnhaven Dive Center
on board the Midnight Express, Dana Chapman.

     This years turn out was impressive. Nearly every spot was booked on both the Olympus and the vessel I captain, the Midnight Express for all three days Friday September 23rd through Sunday September 25th. Taking up the lion share of the spots was the group from Lynnhaven Dive Center based out of Virginia Beach, Virginia. Since there was only one John Chatterton and more than 20 divers from Lynnhaven, the group was split up and divided on to both boats where John shared his time on each.

Captain Robert Purifoy of Olympus Dive Center.

     On Friday morning, the weather seemed to be cooperating by the looks of it at the dock but, the forecast was ominous with a small craft advisory posted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) weather service which indicated there was to be 5 foot swells offshore with some heavy winds. Based on the information we had on hand on that morning Captain Robert Purifoy of the Olympus and the proprietor of Olympus Dive Center, deemed it safe enough to head out and as we say in North Carolina, "take a look at it". I concurred with his decision and continued to load up all the divers and gear on to the 'Midnight' and head out for a days diving. My plan today was to head south out of Beaufort Inlet and go as far as allowed on a full day charter to try to avoid the low visibility conditions that have plagued us since Hurricane Irene tore through the region last month. The general rule is, the further you go offshore and the closer you get to the Gulf Stream, the clearer the water would be. With John Chatterton diving on the Olympus today, my group, headed by Dana Chapman from Lynnhaven Dive Center, and special guest Dr. Nick Bird from DAN, agreed with my idea and liked the sound of diving the wreck of the W.E. Hutton, aka Papoose 32 miles south.

Dive mate, Mike Phillips
on the deck of the
Midnight Express with ominous
cloud cover in the background. 

     The ride out was uneventful the first 25 miles with a modest ground swell and 10-15 knots of wind chop on top beating in to the 'Midnight'. As the last seven miles ticked off my GPS on my way to the final waypoint, the seas began to pick up some what and the swell heights increased. "This day might prove to be a little more challenging than I had hoped", I thought to myself. The conditions were still within limits with the skill set of the divers I had onboard so I would continue on. Not having any idea what the visibility would be today I discussed with my mate, Mike Phillips what to do in the event of low 'viz'. I said, "If you can see more than ten feet we will give it a try". As luck would have it, Mike called up to me on the head set that the viz was about 10-15 feet. I was pleased as punch. 10-15 feet of viz on an average day would be terrible but compared to what it has been it was pretty good. 

Divers preparing for a dive on the deck of the Midnight.

     I gave the heads up to all the divers what the skinny was with the dive and fortunately I heard no grumbles from any of the them. They were here to dive and "to hell with the visibility", seemed to be there silent motto. With sunlight overhead, clear water beneath and decent size waves tossing the boat about the divers one by one disappeared over the side and headed down the anchor line to get a glimpse of the Papoose lying in 120 feet of sea water below them. The crew and I sat back and kept watch while we waited for the divers to return. Soon enough the tell tale sign of bubbles could be seen rising up from the anchor line below the stem of the 'Midnight'. As each diver made his and her way back on to the boat I asked them, "how was your dive and what would you say the 'viz' was?". Each and every one of them reported they had a great dive and they could see at least 20-25 feet. You would think I was the one returning after a great dive based on how excited I was to hear this news.

The U-352. (Stock)

     Once all were collected up and roll call completed we pulled anchor and headed over the U-352 (please see previous Dive Blog Report Hunter Turned to Hunted) to try our luck over there for dive number two. Another dive boat in the area had reported 25 foot of 'viz' earlier in the day so it seemed that it would be good call to dive the Sub today. Sure enough, after my last diver was up after diving the U-Boat all seemed elated at getting a crack at this epic WWII wreck. Many of the divers on board had already dived the Sub before but that didn't seem to matter. This is not a wreck dive that most enthusiasts grow weary of all too quickly. The 'viz' was reported at around 15-20 feet while others indicated it was better than that. (Visibility is one of those things that in a crowd of 20 divers you sometimes will get twenty different interpretations of the 'viz'). With a pair of successful dives under our belt and the wind blowing 15-20 knots it was time to turn tale and head for home.

Empty cylinders at the fill station.

The 5 plus foot swells at the stern of the 'Midnight' it made for a interesting ride in to shore as we surfed down the face of the waves and climbed back up the back of the next one in front. In no time at all we made it back to shore safe and sound. The divers began transporting empty dive cylinders to the fill station to top them off again for the next days diving. Stories were swapped and plans for the next day were laid down. With weather permitting we would try for the wreck of Aeolus.

     On Saturday morning at 0445 I flipped open my lap top to check the weather forecast for the day. I didn't see anything that would give me cause for alarm except the rain and storm systems I was seeing along the coastline on the radar. Once at the dock Capt. Robert and myself assessed the conditions and waited for the storm to dissipate that was right over our heads. Once this happened and the coast was clear, the 'Midnight' headed out alongside the Olympus for another go at diving the Graveyard of the Atlantic. Today however, I had the honor of John Chatterton join us for some diving. Having John on board sharing his stories, knowledge and love of diving is enough entertainment by itself. 

First Mate of the 'Midnight',
Danny Facciola.

     As planned, we headed out to see what the 'viz' was like on the Aeolus. The Olympus, being a somewhat speedier vessel, had beat me out to the dive site first and sent his diver down to tie in on the wreck of the USCG Cutter Spar which is only a few hundred feet away from the Aeolus. With the exception of the rain and occasional bolt of lighting the weather was cooperating and actually calmer than what the forecast had predicted. I stood by and waited to hear back what the conditions were like before I would send my diver in as well. As it would be, the rain was coming down heavy and the cloud cover was dense allowing for very little sunlight to poke through. It was about as dreary and dark as it can be in full daylight. I expected that with these dark conditions the 'viz' on the Spar would be low. After a few minutes Captain Robert came over the VHF radio, "my diver landed in the sand and can't see the wreck, five feet of viz and very dark, over". "Yuck" I thought to myself. I'm heading south to where I know it was decent the day before, the Papoose. If I'm lucky the extra 8 mile drive due south might bring us out of the rain and darkness. So without delay I headed over to the Papoose once again. Unfortunately, when we got there the rain continued to come down but it seemed as though there was a tad more ambient light now than earlier. I dropped my new first mate, Danny Facciola (John Thompson sadly had to pack his saddle bag and move on) on to the wreck to tie in and reported similar conditions from yesterday but darker due to the cloud cover.

The inside of the
W.E. Hutton aka Papoose on
a clear day. (Stock)

    After giving yet another briefing, I opened the 'pool' and let everyone jump in for a dip. The long short of this day of diving is, everyone had a great dive and managed to see the local residents on the wreck, the Sand Tiger Sharks. The dive was good enough where all listened to my recommendations and stayed here for the second dive as well. When conditions are adverse and unknown elsewhere you stick with what is good and what works. That's a rule to live by in this business. After the diving was completed we turned for home with a boat load of water logged divers tucked away below. The forecast for tomorrow once again did not look promising but being that it was far from accurate the last two days I wasn't making plans to lay on my couch and take a day off. I stayed optimistic and hoped for a go the following morning.

     On Sunday AM, the rain continued to come down but the wind was almost non-existent. Swells from an unknown storm system far offshore were predicted to build more from the day before. Many of the divers on board both boats, the Olympus and Midnight were feeling as though they had enough diving in these conditions. Captain Robert picking up on this vibe did the noble thing and allowed anyone who wished to, to back out of the last days diving. With about half of all participating divers calling it quits the remaining divers were moved to the 'Midnight' including John Chatterton who had no interest in staying at the dock on this day. After settling everyone in, dock lines were cast off and we pulled away from the dock. My intention was to head over the the USS Schurz to try our luck out on this famous WWI US warship. The Schurz is only three miles from the Papoose making it likely that the conditions would be about the same. The worst thing that could happen is if the dive on the Schurz was no good due to low viz we could easily head over to the Papoose.

The USS Schurz when the water is more than 20 feet of viz. (stock)

     The ride out yielded once again torrents of rain interspersed by drizzling rain with a touch of showers mixed in for flavor. I kept joking with my mate Danny by saying every hour or so, "It's raining out". Despite this depressing weather the moral of all the divers on board as well as the crews was high. It seemed that nothing would get this group bummed out. On the ride out, as I looked at the ships radar set on 24 mile scale, all I could see was a large blob on the display that indicated rain with the 'Midnight' right in the middle of it. As the last ten miles ticked off I noticed an opening in the radar that showed the promise of a break in the rain. As I got closer I could start to see the semblance of light way ahead as it continued to pour on us. Within the last mile, the "Midnight' poked her head out from the rain clouds to discover the first signs of the sunlight in a partially cloud covered sky. My crew secured the boat to the wreck and radioed up to me that the 'viz' was pretty decent at around 20 feet but still a little dark. It was a go! I hurried to the back deck, briefed the divers and said the light switch was in the on position but it didn't look like for much longer so hurry up and get in the water.

John Chatterton returning from a dive.

     Without delay and with precision, all the divers made it in and headed on down to the wreck for a looksy. The Schurz is a very old wreck with a steep history (read the link) and also very low lying to the sand. Not much of her remains that is more than five feet above the sea bed. For some divers this makes the wreck more interesting while for others they would prefer a more intact wreck. Once the divers all returned and delivered their reports I don't think the latter type of diver was present. All seemed pretty jazzed with their trip down to the wreck including John Chatterton. Just as the last of the divers clambered back on board a squall made its presence known to the boat with gusting winds and you guessed it, rain! The wind and rain is usually not an issue when at sea unless extreme. It is lighting that gets my serious attention. A metal dive boat in the middle of the ocean is like a lighting rod. When a smaller vessel can avoid being in lighting it is always wisest to do just that and avoid it. So far today I saw plenty of rain but no lighting to speak of. 

Duncan Pinnock with Lynnhaven Dive Center
scored a few nice Grouper over three days.

     With that said, I would move the boat over to the U-352 once again for the final dive of the day. It was decent here two days ago and I couldn't see any reason why it would be different. My mate secured us to the wreck and indicated the 'viz' was about 15 feet in the dark. Once again it was a go. Knowing my divers as I did I knew no one would have an issue with these conditions. I made a quick brief and discovered everyone on the boat has been to the Sub before but one man. With that said I announced to everyone we had a U-352 virgin on board where an applause burst out right after. Seeing the enthusiasm the other divers had for this wreck must have excited him more than usual. 

     Everyone, especially John, made the dive on the Sub. Since John has a special affinity for U-Boats he was one of the first divers in the water. After a while everyone returned to the Midnight with a thumbs up attitude. Seriously, their was no getting this group down. There positive attitudes and enthusiasm for sport diving carried them through a three day weekend of below average dive conditions for North Carolina. For them, this final dive on the Sub was more icing on an already sugary cake. Before I started patting myself on the back, it was time to get the boat underway since the skies opened up yet again this time with angry thunder and cracks of lighting threatening us. It was a 'loot and scoot' day and I was very ready to scoot.

Chip and his helmet Go-Pro Cam. Don't knock it until
you try it. They're awesome.

In a few minutes the 'Midnight' was heading due north at a speed slightly faster then sound. I had had enough of this weather and wanted to get home sooner than later. Besides, everyone and everything on the boat was soaked and smelled like my high school gym bag after a week at football camp. The divers turned to passengers hunkered down and made themselves comfortable and in no time most all were in a deep coma probably dreaming of U-Boats filled with contraband gold.

     As I pulled the boat in to the dock and my crew secured the lines I felt a sense of accomplishment. The Olympus boats managed to safely make it out for three days of diving when weather forecasts said we could do otherwise. From my position most of the divers with us on this Norwood Foundation event had memorable dives even those who took the last day of diving off. One thing for sure is Captain Robert and myself tried to make the best of adverse weather and dive conditions and show everyone a good time but like in politics you can't make all the people happy all of the time.

Future SCUBA diver, Samantha Faatz
trying to keep dry. Photo courtesy of Scott
and Sara Faatz.

     For the next hour, divers packed bags, unloaded gear, shook hands, swapped business cards and made plans for the next dive trip back to Olympus Dive Center. Diving is more than a recreational sport it is a social culture all of its own with groups of people sharing a common interest doing what they love to do. The crew of the Midnight Express, the Olympus and all of the staff at the shop wanted to thank everyone especially John & Carla Chatterton, Dianna Strauss Norwood and Dr. Nick Bird for making this a fantastic weekend of diving. At press time it is unknown how much money was raised for the Norwood Foundation but rumor has it it was a good year. Once this information is known you should hear about it on Olympus's facebook page.

Olympus crew and friends at John Chatterton's birthday party at Floyds 1921.

    As for me, I have yet to make a dive since 'Irene' swept through and the weather conditions kept me on the deck of the boat the whole weekend. Don't feel too sorry for me though since I'm able to live vicariously off of my passengers. I still have several more weekends of charters in October so I hope to get some more video, photos and stories to share with you all very soon.  Stay tuned for more Dive Blogs in the coming weeks. I still have to report on my Top Ten Dives of All Time and the making of The Wrecks of Truk Lagoon and The Wreck of the SS President Coolidge dive documentaries.

Happy Diving!

Mike Gerken

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Mike Gerken